Elevating apparatus.



A. RAY. ELEVATING APPARATUS, APPLIOATIOK FILED APR-6,1908.

984,706. Patented Feb. 21, 19 11.

2 SHEETSBKEET 1.

THE NORRIS PETERS co.. \vasummmv,

I A. RAY.

ELEVATING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED APILG, 1908.

984,706. Patented Feb.21, 191-1-.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

UNITE STATES A FFTCE.

ALEXANDER BAY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO EDWARD S. LOWRY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

ELEVATING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Feb. 21 1911 Application filed April 6, 1908.

Serial No. 425,320.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALEXANDER RAY, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city and county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented an Improvement in Elevating Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

My invention has reference to elevating apparatus, and consists of certain improvements, which are fully set forth in the following specification, and shown in the accompanyingdrawings, which form a part thereof.

The object of my invention is to provide a suitable construction of elevator more particularly adapted to wharf purposes for lifting coal, sand, gravel, etc., from boats and transferring them to storage receptacles or bins, the operation of the apparatus being carried on in a continuous manner and at a minimum cost.

My invention consists of a trestle or framework provided at its upper part with a horizontal guide-way, and combined with a carriage guided in said guide-way, a boom hinged to the carriage adapted to be raised or lowered at its outerend which projects beyond the trestlework, and an endless c011- veyer supported at the free end of the boom and hanging downward under the action of gravity for making contact with the materials contained in boats or other vessels.

My invention also consists in the above described apparatus when combined with a horizontal conveying device arranged upon the carriage to receive the materials elevated by the endless conveyer and discharge them at a point distant from the conveyer.

My invention also comprehends other features of construction and details, which, together with the features above specified, will be better understood by reference to the drawings, in'whichz- Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of an elevating apparatus embodying my improvements; Fig. 2 is a cross sectional elevation of the same on line 22; Fig. 3 is a cross section of the carriage and its conveyer; Fig. 4 is a cross section of the main frame and carriage; and Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation of the conveyer boot.

A is the t-restlework or permanent framing, and may be constructed in any suitable manner. Ordinarily, this framework is arranged immediately at a wharf, and is pro- ,at (Z upon the carriage vided at its upper part with a horizontal guide-way, B.

C is a carriage which is arranged to be moved in the guide-way B in a horizontal direction by means of pinions 0 on the carriage engaging stationary racks 7) on the main frame. This carriage G preferably cX- tcnds outward. beyond the framework A, and may support inclosing walls B for housing in and protecting the elevating apparatus at its point of discharge. Hinged C is the boom D of any suitable construction so that its outer or free end may swing upward or downward. This boom is elevated or lowered at its free end by means of a cable D passing over a sheave (Z on the main frame, said cable being wound upon a drum D carried at the rear part of the main frame and which drum may be rotated by any suitable sprocket chain device, such as D which may lead down to the ground. It is immaterial to my invention what means are employed for ad justing the boom D, and the means shown is only given by way of illustration.

E is a drum journaled on the free end of the boom D and supports the endless bucket elevator F which may be formed by an endless belt of rubber 0" leather F having the buckets f. An endless bucket conveyer of this character is especially good for handling sand and gritty substances, but where materials to be handled are coal, the conveyer may have the buckets connected by means of chains as is wellknown in the art, Experience has demonstrated the fact that when chains are employed in an elevator of this character for handling sand, the hinged portions of the links of the chains are quickly worn out, and for that reason I prefer to use a rubber or leather belt when my invention is intended for handling materials such as sand. The bucket conveyer han s down by gravity, and the lower end is gui ded about a roller H confined in a boot G which applies weight to the bottom of the conveyor and holds it in a positive manner against swinging. Then the materials to be elevated are in a boat as'indicated in dotted lines, this boot G is allowed to rest upon the material to be elevated, and said material may be shoveled into the boot so that the buckets catch it very rapidly. As the material in the boat becomes lower, the cable D is gradually let out to lower the boom D i H longitudinally over the racks b.

and thereby lower the boot G to keep it in contact with the material. To enable the boot to remain vertical, I prefer to provide it with two upright arms having lateral pins l). forming forks, between the prongs of which the lateral edges of the belt F passes. In this manner, the boot is not permitted to rotate and tangle itself with the buckets.

The boom is provided with a hood J extending snugly over the conveyer and the drum E to prevent sand or materials being elevated becoming scattered when the conveyer passes over the drum. This hood J formed at its lower and inward part into a discharging mouth, which is connected by an extensible chute K with the carriage C. The carriage is provided with a horizontal conveyer L which is guided over rollers at each end, as indicated at L. This conveyer may be of the ordinary type of belt conveyer as is more fully shown in F 3, and which receives the contents from the chute K and discharges it rearwardly into the hopperRcarried by the fixed frame and through which it may pass by the inclined chute r' to the place of distribution.

N is a shaft which may be driven by a sprocket chain 0, and this shaft is provided with sprocket wheels which drive a sprocket chain M for rotating the drum E on the boom D and for driving the sprocket chains P for operating the conveyer L. The sprocket chain 0 may be driven by any suitable power, and is run continuously during the operation of the apparatus.

As the boom D at its free end describes an arc of a circle when it is elevated or lowcred, it is evident that, if not otherwise pre vented, the changing of the angle of the boom will change the vertical position of the elevating conveyer, and consequently of the normal position of the boot, G. To guard against this, I provide a roller B on the carriage C which works against the inner face of the outer portion of the conveyer, so that from the roller B downward the conveyer may be vertical or substantially so, and may be bent about the roller B in passing over the drum E. By employing this roller B, the conveyer F may be raised or lowered bodily without materially displacing the boot G. The walls or shields B carried by the outer end of the carriage G extend laterally upon each side of the conveyer, the hood J, and the extensible chute K, so that in the transference of the sand or other material from the conveyer into the chute K, it is protected against lateral currents of wind which might dissipate the falling sand.

The carriage C is adjustable transversely upon the fixed frame A by rotating the pinions 0, and thereby causing them to travel In this manner, the overhanging of the endless conveyer with respect to the side of the fixed frame A may be considerably varied to suit the width of the boat or to operate in an outer boat where two boats are arranged side by side.

It is immaterial what particular form of conveyer ll may be provided for the carriage C as any means found suitable for conveying the materials backward from the chute K will answer the purpose. It is also evident that if desired the chuteK may dis charge directly to the place where the materials are to be deposited by simply giving it the right length and angle to suit the requiren'ients.

\Vhile I have shown my invention in the general form which is adapted for commercial use, I do not restrict myself to the details of construction, as these may be modilied without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In an elevator apparatus, the combination of an elevated fixed frame, transversely adjustable carriage on said frame at an elevation from the ground, a boom pivoted to said carriage and overhanging the fixed frame and adjustable in the plane of adjustment of the carriage, an endless bucket conveyer supported by the free end of the boom and extending down to the base of the fixed frame, means on the fixed frame sep arate from the carriage and extending to the base of the said fixed frame for adjusting the boom to raise orlower the endless bucket conveyer as an entirety, and means for driving the bucket conveyer.

2. In an elevator apparatus, the combination of an elevated fixed frame arranged adjacent to a waterway, a transversely adjustable carriage on said frame at an elevation from the ground and overhanging the waterway, means for adjusting the carriage on the fixed frame, a conveyer carried by the carriage, a boom pivoted wholly to said carriage intermediate of its ends and overhanging the fixed frame and adjustable in the plane of adjustment of the carriage, an endless bucket conveyer wholly supported by the free end of the boom and extending down to the base of the fixed frame and independent of the conveyer on the carriage, means on the fixed frame for adjusting the boom to raise or low-er the endless bucket conveyer as an entirety, means on the boom to guide the contents discharged by the bucket conveyer upon the conveyer on the carriage, and means for driving the conveyers.

In an elevator apparatus, thecombination of an elevated fixed frame, a transvcrsely adjustable carriage on said frame at an elevation from the ground, a boom pivoted to said carriage and overhanging the fixed frame and adjustable in the plane of adjustment of the carriage, an endless bucket conveyer supported by the free end of the boom and extending down to the base of the fixed frame, means on the fixed frame separate from the carriage for adjusting the boom to raise or lower the endless bucket conveyer as an entirety, a boot hung upon the lower part of the bucket conveyer for guiding it and forming a feeding device for filling the buckets, a separate conveyer for transferring the materials elevated by the bucket conveyer to a distance, means supported by both the boom and carriage for transferring the materials discharged from the bucket conveyer to the separate conveyer, and means for driving both of the bucket conveyers.

4. In an elevator apparatus, the combination of an elevated fixed frame, a transversely adjustable carriage on said frame at an elevation from the ground and overhanging the fixed frame, a boom pivoted to said carriage and overhanging the fixed frame in the direction of the plane of its adjustment, an endless bucket conveyer supported by the free end of the boom and extending down to the base of the fixed frame, means on the fixed frame separate from the carriage for adjusting the boom to raise or lower the endless bucket conveyer relatively to the carriage, means on the carriage arranged beyond the fixed frame and independent of the boom, for guiding the endless bucket conveyer vertically, and means for driving the bucket conveyer.

5. In an elevating apparatus, the combination of a fixed elevated frame, a pivoted boom having its weight supported by the fixed frame, means on the fixed frame for adjusting the free end of the boom, means for adjusting the lower end of the boom transversely in connection with the fixed frame, an endless bucket conveyer supported wholly by the boom so as to be bodily adjustable vertically relatively to the fixed frame, means to impart motion to the conveyer, and means other than the boom for receiving the materials discharged by the conveyer and transferring it away from the conveyer.

6. In an elevating apparatus, the combination of a fixed elevated frame, a pivoted boom having its weight supported by the fixed frame, means on the fixed frame for adjusting the free end of the boom, means for adjusting the lower end of the boom transversely invconneetion with the fixed frame, an endless bucket conveyer supported wholly by the boom so that it may be raised or lowered bodily relatively to the fixed frame, a hood inclosing the upper part of the conveyer and carried by the boom and having a backward discharge chute, means to impart motion to the conveyer, and means for receiving the material discharged by the conveyer through the chute by gravity and transferring it away from the conveyer.

7. In an elevating apparatus, the combination of a fixed frame, a pivoted boom having its weight supported by the fixed frame, means for adjusting the free end of the boom, means separate from the boom for adjusting the boom transversely 011 the fixed frame and also having a shield extending upon each side of the boom and conveyer to protect the upper end of the latter against the wind, an endless bucket conveyer supported by the boom, means to impart motion to the conveyer, and means for receiving the material discharged by the conveyer and transferring it away from the conveyer.

In testimony of which invention, I have hereunto set my hand.

ALEXANDER RAY. Witnesses:

R. M. KELLY, M. F. DRISOOLL. 

